This invention relates to an electrical connector which locks doubly a plurality of contacts in an insulator thereof. Here, double locking means temporary locking by lances of the insulator and regular locking by a double locking member.
An essential point of a first conventional electrical connector will be described referring to FIGS. 1, 2, 3 and 4. The first conventional electrical connector is described in Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication (A) No. 325814 of 1994 (JP 6-325814 A).
As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, a connector consists of an insulator 21, a double locking member (retainer) 22, a restraining member 23, and a plurality of contacts 24. The double locking member (retainer) 22, to be described later, is located at either a temporary locking position or a regular locking portion.
The insulator 21 is formed in the shape of a box as a whole. A pair of lock levers 25 which interlocks a mating connector is installed at the upper surface of the insulator 21. An end of each lock lever 25 is fixed at the upper surface of the insulator 21, and the other end of each lock lever 25 is a free one. A finger-pressure portion 26 is installed at the free ends of both lock levers 25. The finger-pressure portion 26 is located at a concavity of a frame-shaped thick portion 27 which is formed at the rear end side (that is, the opposite side to the connecting side with the mating connector) of the insulator 21. When the connector connects with the mating connector (not shown), the finger-pressure portion 26 sinks once toward the inside of the insulator 21. Subsequently, the finger-pressure portion 26 returns to the initial portion thereof and engages with the mating connector.
A plurality of contact-accommodating chambers or contact holes 28 which accommodate each contact 24 partitively are formed in the insulator 21. The contact-accommodating chambers 28 are constituted in two steps in the up and down direction of the insulator 21. The eleven contact-accommodating chambers 28 are formed at each step, respectively. The rear end portion of each contact-accommodating chamber 28 in the upper step is located at the inside of the insulator 21 in order to accommodate the double locking member 22 and forms a space 29 which accommodates the double locking member 22. The double locking member 22 is located on the partitive walls which partition the contact-accommodating chambers 28 in the lower step.
Further, the rear end portions of the partitive walls which partition the contact-accommodating chambers 28 in the lower step draw back to the inside of the insulator 21 and form a space 30 which accommodates the restraining member 23.
An engaging projection 27a which engages with two engaging grooves 22e and 22f of the double locking member 22 is formed on both end surfaces of the concavity of the frame-shaped thick portion 27, respectively. In FIG. 1, only the engaging projection 27a of the left side of the frame-shaped thick portion 27 appears. However, since FIG. 1 is a perspective view, the engaging projection 27a of the right side of the frame-shaped thick portion 27 does not appear.
Furthermore, an engaging window 27b is formed at the rear inside of both the right and left sides of the frame-shaped thick portion 27, respectively.
A pair of engaging projections 23a formed protrusively from both the right and left sides of the restraining member 23 engages with a pair of the engaging windows 27b bored at both the right and left sides of the frame-shaped thick portion 27, respectively. In FIG. 1, only the engaging window 27b of the left side of the frame-shaped thick portion 27 appears. However, since FIG. 1 is a perspective view, the engaging window 27b of the right side of the frame-shaped thick portion 27 does not appear.
A pair of engaging projections 23b formed protrusively from the top side of the restraining member 23 engages with a pair of engaging holes (not shown) bored at the upper inside of the frame-shaped thick portion 27, respectively.
The double locking member 22 which is accommodated in the space 29 of the insulator 21 has an upper-plate portion 22a and a lower-plate portion 22b. The upper-plate portion 22a faces parallel and separately the lower-plate portion 22b. A plurality of partitive walls are installed as one body at a given interval between the upper-plate portion 22a and the lower-plate portion 22b. A plurality of contact through-holes 22c are constituted by the partitive walls. The contact through-holes 22c communicate with the contact-accommodating chambers 28 in the upper step of the insulator 21, respectively.
A pair of finger-pressure portions 22d is formed protrusively on the upper-portion 22a of the double locking member 22. Each of the finger-pressure portions 22d is inserted between the concavity of the frame-shaped thick portion 27 and the finger-pressure portion 26 of the locking lever 25, respectively. A convex stripe 22g is formed horizontally at the outside of each finger-pressure portion 22d. The engaging grooves 22e and 22f are formed above and below each convex stripe 22g, respectively. The engaging grooves 22e and 22f engage with the engaging projection 27a which is formed on each end surface of the concavity of the frame-shaped thick portion 27. When the double locking member 22 is located at a temporary locking position, the engaging groove 22f disposed at the lower side engages with the engaging projection 27a. That is to say, the engaging groove 22f disposed at the lower side is a temporary engaging groove. When the double locking member 22 is located at the descended position (i.e. a regular locking position), the engaging groove 22e disposed at the upper side engages with the engaging projection 27a. That is to say, the engaging groove 22e is a regular engaging groove.
Next, after the double locking member 22 is inserted into the space 29 of the insulator 21, the restraining member 23 is inserted into the space 30 of the insulator 21. The restraining member 23 prevents the double locking member 22 from escaping out of the space 29. The bottom side of the restraining member 23 is joined with the bottom end of the insulator 21 through a hinge portion 31. When the restraining member 23 is lifted up to the direction shown by an arrow around the hinge portion 31, the engaging projections 23a, 23a, 23b, and 23b engage with the corresponding engaging windows 27b or the engaging holes (not shown) formed at the insulator 21, respectively. A plurality of contact through-holes 23c are formed in a lattice at the restraining member 23 also. The contact through-holes 23c communicate with the contact accommodating chambers 28 in the lower step of the insulator 21 and the contact through-holes 22c in the upper step of the double locking member 22.
Each contact 24 is equipped with a first engaging portion 24a engaging a lance 21a (refer FIG. 3) which is formed in the insulator 21 and a second engaging portion 24b engaging the double locking member 22.
Further, the description will proceed to insertion of each contact 24 into the restraining member 23 and the insulator 21. At first, each engaging projection 27a of the frame-shaped thick portion 27 engages with each engaging groove 22f of the double locking member 22. The double locking member 22 is located at the temporary locking position. In this state, each contact 24 is inserted from each contact insert-hole 23c of the restraining member 23 to each contact accommodating chamber 28 in the insulator 21.
In case of the double locking member 22 is located at the temporary locking position, as shown FIG. 3, each lance 21a formed in the insulator 21 engages with the first engaging portion 24a of each contact 24. However, both lower edges of the upper-plate portion 22a and the lower-plate portion 22b of the double locking member 22 do not engage with the side surface of the second engaging portion 24b of each contact 24. In this state, each contact 24 can be inserted into and extracted from the restraining member 23 and the insulator 21. Incidentally, each lance 21a can be released from the first engaging portion 24a of each contact 24 by the following way. That is to say, each lance 21a having elasticity is deformed by way of a screw driver and the like.
Furthermore, as shown in FIG. 4, when the finger-pressure portions 22d of the double locking member 22 is pushed by an operator""s finger, the double locking member 22 goes down. Thereupon, both the lower edges of the upper-plate portion 22a and the lower-plate portion 22b of the double locking member 22 engage with the side surface of the second engaging portion 24b of each contact 24. When the double locking member 22 has reached the regular locking position, each engaging projection 27a of the insulator 21 gets over each convex stripe 22g of the double locking member 22 and engages with each regular engaging groove 22e. Then, the double locking member 22 is prevented from moving (i.e. rising) thereof hereafter.
Incidentally speaking, when even a contact 24 is located in a non-perfect inserting position (i.e. a half inserting position), the bottom surface of the upper-plate portion 22a or the lower-plate portion 22b of the double locking member 22 hits against the top surface of the second engaging portion 24b of the contact 24. Therefore, the double locking member 22 is prevented from moving thereof to the regular locking position. Consequently, it can be detected with ease that even one contact 24 is located in a half inserting position.
Succeedingly, an essential point of a second conventional electrical connector will be described referring to FIGS. 5 to 13. The second conventional electrical connector is described in Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication (A) No. 195456 of 1999 (JP 11-195456 A).
Referring FIGS. 5 and 6, a socket connector 40 is equipped with a socket insulator 41, two coil springs 42, and a sliding member 43. The front center of the sliding member 43 is equipped with a regulating protrusion 43a. The sliding member 43 is equipped with two protrusive portions 43b which guide and preserve the coil springs 42.
A plurality of contact accommodating holes 49 having an opening 49a (referring FIG. 8C etc.), respectively, for receiving pin contacts 52a, 52b, and 52c are formed at the front end and in the before and behind direction of the socket insulator 41. Each socket contact 44 connected a cable 60 at an end thereof is accommodated in each contact accommodating hole 49.
Further, an accommodating hole 45 for the sliding member 43 is formed at the center of the socket insulator 41. The sliding member 43 is accommodated in the accommodating hole 45 so as to slide in the before and behind direction and be biased in the before direction by the coil springs 42.
Furthermore, a pair of key grooves 46 is formed from the front end toward the back at both the right and left sides of the accommodating hole 45 in the socket insulator 41.
Referring to FIGS. 5 and 7, a pin connector 50 has a pin insulator 51. The pin insulator 51 is equipped with two contact accommodating holes 51a which stand horizontally in a line. An end of each of pin contacts 52a, 52b, and 52c for signals is inserted protrusively in the contact accommodating holes 51a through the rear wall of the pin insulator 51 from the outside of the pin insulator 51. And besides, the other end of each of the pin contacts 52a, 52b, and 52c lengthens to the rear of the pin insulator 51 and bends in a L-shape. Still more, the other ends of the pin contacts 52a, 52b, and 52c are arranged by a locator 53 and are inserted into through-holes 61a of a printed circuit board 61. The pin insulator 51 is fixed on the printed circuit board 61 by means of screws and so forth.
A pair of locking arms 54 is installed horizontally at the center in the top and bottom and crosswise directions of each contact accommodating hole 51a. A pair of keys 55 which is inserted into the pair of the key grooves 46 of the socket insulator 41 is provided at both the right and left sides of the pair of the locking arms 54.
Incidentally, as shown in FIG. 5, a pair of protrusive portions 41a provided at the top surface of the socket insulator 41 engages with a pair of grooves 51b provided at the top surface of each accommodating hole 51a of the pin connector 50. A pair of grooves 41b provided at the bottom surface of the socket insulator 41 engages with a pair of protrusive portions 51c provided at the bottom surface of each accommodating hole 51a of the pin connector 50. The relationship between the distance of the pair of the protrusive portions 41a and the distance of the pair of the grooves 51b and the relationship between the distance of the pair of the grooves 41b and the distance of the pair of the protrusive portions 51c differ in compliance with combinations of one of a plurality of the socket connectors 40 and one of a plurality of the pin connectors 50. This difference prevents between the socket connectors 40 and the pin connectors 50 from engaging in the wrong.
Referring to FIGS. 8A to 13C, the description will proceed to an engagement between the socket connector 40 and the pin connector 50.
Referring to FIG. 8A, when the socket connector 40 engages completely with the pin connector 50, the pair of locking arms 54 is accommodated in the accommodating hole 45 of the socket connector 40 and the regulating protrusion 43a of the sliding member 43 is inserted into a gap between the locking arms 54. Each of protrusive portions 54a of the locking arms 54 is accommodated in an accommodated hole 41c formed at the socket insulator 41 and engages with an engaging step portion 41d formed at the socket insulator 41. Therefore, the socket connector 40 is prevented from disengaging out of the pin connector 50, The pair of the keys 55 is inserted into the pair of the key grooves 46.
Referring to FIG. 8B, the insulator 41 is equipped with a pair of spring accommodating holes 41e which accommodates the pair of coil springs 42. On one hand, the sliding member 43 is equipped with a pair of spring accommodating portions 43c providing the pair of the protrusive portions 43b at both the upper and lower positions of the regulating protrusion 43a thereof. The pair of the coil springs 42 is accommodated all over the pair of spring accommodating holes 41e and the pair of spring accommodating portions 43c, including the circumference of each protrusive portion 43b. 
A double locking member 47 locks regularly the socket contacts 44. A restraining member 48 prevents the double locking member 47 from separating out of the socket insulator 41.
As shown in FIG. 8C, the pin contacts 52a, 52b, and 52c for the signals come into contact with the socket contacts 44.
FIGS. 9A, 9B, and 9C show the states when the socket connector 40 does not yet engage the pin connector 50. A front plane 41 f of the insulator 41 of the socket connector 40 confronts with an opening 51d of the insulator 51 of the pin connector 50. After this, the insulator 41 is inserted into the accommodating holes 51a through the opening 51d. 
FIGS. 10A, 10B, and 10C show the states when the outside of the insulator 41 of the socket connector 40 has been guided by the inner wall of the accommodating holes 51a and the socket connector 40 has partly engaged the pin connector 50. The keys 55 are inserted into the key grooves 46. However, each of the pin contacts 52a, 52b, and 52c for the signals does not yet come into contact with each of the contacts 44 of the socket connector 40.
FIGS. 11A, 11B, and 11C show the states that the socket connector 40 has more been inserted into the pin connector 50. The pair of the protrusive portions 54a of the locking arms 54 is restrained so as to bend toward the inside of the pin connector 50 by an opening 41g formed in the insulator 41 and a pair of guide walls 41h adjoining the opening 41g. The locking arms 54 bend elastically and enter into an accommodating hole 41c bored in the insulator 41 along the pair of the guide walls 41h. And so, the top ends of the protrusive portions 54a come into contact with the regulating protrusion 43a of the slide member 43. At the same time, the pin contacts 52a, 52b, and 52c enter into the inside of the insulator 41 from the openings 49a and begin to come into contact with the socket contacts 44, respectively.
Referring to FIGS. 12A to 13C, when the socket connector 40 is still more inserted into the pin connector 50, the protrusive portions 54a of the locking arms 54 push the regulating protrusion 43a of the sliding member 43 to the rearward, opposing a force of the coil springs 42 which bias the sliding member 43 to the left direction. In this state, when the socket connector 40 discontinues to be inserted into the pin connector 50, the socket connector 40 is given a force in the direction pushed out of the pin connector 50 by a reaction of the coil springs 42.
When the socket connector 40 is yet still more inserted into the pin connector 50 as shown in FIG. 8A, the protrusive portions 54a of the locking arms 54 are accommodated in the accommodating holes 41c. Since the sliding member 43 is always biased to the left direction by the coil springs 42, the regulating protrusion 43a enters between the locking arms 54. Accordingly, each locking arm 54 is limited bending to the inside thereof and each protrusive portion 54a is prevented from moving to the inside of each locking arm 54, Then, the socket connector 40 engages completely with the pin connector 50. At the same time, each of the pin contacts 52a, 52b, and 52c comes into contact with each of the contacts 44. Hereupon, when two voluntary contacts 44 are short-circuited and continuity of two pin contacts corresponding the two voluntary contacts 44 is detected, it is known that the socket connector 40 has completely engaged with the pin connector 50.
Next, the description will proceed to separation between the socket connector 40 and the pin connector 50.
In the states shown in FIGS. 8A, 8B, and 8C, a pull 43d of the sliding member 43 is moved to the right side by an operator""s finger, the regulating protrusion 43a is pulled out of the protrusive portions 54a of the locking arms 54. Succeedingly, as shown in FIGS. 13A, 13B, and 13C, the regulating protrusion 43a has been pulled out of the protrusive portions 54a and the pin connector 50 is moved so as to be pulled out of the socket connector 40. Then, the pair of the locking arms 54 bends to the inside thereof and the protrusive portions 54a pass through the pair of the guide walls 41h. On this occasion, even if the pull 43d of the sliding member 43 is released from the operator""s finger, the regulating protrusion 43a pushes the protrusive portion 54a out of the accommodating hole 41c by the reaction of the coil springs 42.
Further, as shown FIGS. 10A, 10B, and 10C, at first, each of the protrusive portions 54a is pulled out of the opening 41g. Next, each of the keys 55 is pulled out of each of the key grooves 46. At this time, each of the pin contacts 52a, 52b, and 52c for the signals is pulled out of the socket connector 40 and separates from each of the socket contacts 44. Continuously, as shown in FIGS. 9A, 9B, and 9C, the pin connector 50 separates completely from the socket connector 40, that is to say, the engagement 15C.
In the temporary locking state, when the bottom portion 75B of the double locking member 75 is pushed into the insulator 72, all of the three contacts 73 become to the regular locking state. In the regular locking state, a protrusion 75C formed at the double locking member 75 locks a corner 72C of the insulator 72 as shown in FIG. 14D. Consequently, the double locking member 75 is prevented from getting out of the insulator 72. In the regular locking state, since the bottom portion 75B of the double locking member 75 does not protrude from the bottom of the insulator 72, the socket connector 71 can engage with the pin connector.
In the three conventional electrical connectors above-mentioned, after the connector has engaged with the mating connector, even if each of the contacts is locked by the double locking member, a gap occurs between each of the contacts and the insulator of either the connector or the mating connector.
Therefore, each of the contacts of the connector and that of the mating connector are relatively movable each other. And so, when a vibration happens between the connector and the mating connector which are engaged with each other, a fretting corrosion occurs between each of the contacts of the connector and that of the mating connector. As a result, since an oxide is made on the surface of each contact, there is the possibility of a bad electrical continuity because an electrical resistance of each contact increases. And besides, the double locking member can not engage smoothly with each contact.
Further, the three conventional connectors above-mentioned has a complicated structure, a large number of parts, and a high price of manufacturing cost.
It is therefore an object of this invention to provide an electrical connector having a double locking mechanism in which there is no gap between a contact and an insulator thereof.
It is another object of this invention to provide an electrical connector having a double locking mechanism whose double locking member can engage smoothly with a contact.
It is still another object of this invention to provide an electrical connector having a double locking mechanism with a compact structure, a few parts, and a low price of manufacturing cost.
In accordance with an aspect of this invention, there is provided an electrical connector having a contact double-locking structure for locking a contact inserted into a contact hole in an insulator, the double-locking structure comprising a double locking member, the double-locking member can move to the direction perpendicular to the inserting direction of the contact in the insulator between a temporary locking position where the double-locking member is temporarily locked with a portion of the insulator and a regular locking position where the double-locking member is regularly locked at a different position in the insulator, the double-locking member being prevented from moving from the temporary locking position to the regular locking position by a stabilizer of the contact when the contact is incompletely inserted into the contact hole, the double-locking member can move from the temporary locking position to the regular locking position when the contact is completely inserted into the contact hole, the double-locking member having an engaging portion for engaging with the stabilizer to prevent the contact from moving out of the contact hole in the opposite direction to the inserting direction when the double-locking member is in the regular locking position, wherein the stabilizer has a guiding portion for guiding the engaging portion therealong when the double-locking member is moved into the regular locking position, whereby the contact is moved in the inserting direction and is brought into its completely inserted position without clearance between the stabilizer and the engaging portion.
Preferably, the guiding portion is an inclined plane.
Preferably, the stabilizer is equipped with a slit and is elastically deformable.
Preferably, the engaging portion is equipped with a groove for holding the stabilizer to prevent the contact from moving in a direction perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of the contact.
Preferably, the engaging portion is equipped with a groove for holding the stabilizer to prevent the contact from moving in a direction perpendicular to the longitudinal direction of the contact.
Preferably, the connector has a plurality of contacts with stabilizers held in a plurality of contact holes in the insulator. The double-locking member has a plurality of engaging portions which prevent the contacts, respectively, from moving in the opposite directions to the inserting direction by engaging with stabilizers of the contacts, respectively.
Preferably, the stabilizer is elastically deformable.
Preferably, the stabilizer is equipped with a slit.